These last few days in the Black Forest have been filled with both emotion and memories. This is the first time I’ve come to this part of Germany, the area where my family comes from, since being here 7 years ago with my youngest son and my Uncle Wolfgang. Walking the stone streets of Freiburg … Continue reading Finding Wolfgang
Category: family
Writer’s tears
I’ve mentioned before that I often find myself weepy when I’m in Ireland. If you know me at all, you’re aware that’s atypical of me. I’m not known to be a crier. On the occasions that I do get teary, it’s likely to be about children and animals, not songs or physical gestures. Last week, though, … Continue reading Writer’s tears
An eternal present
So far, the wettest thing (other than the Irish Sea - more on that in a minute), has been my cheeks. There’s something about being in Ireland, regardless of the number of times I’ve visited, that makes me weepy. When I visited Ireland the very first time, all flights from the states stopped at Shannon … Continue reading An eternal present
Hey, 19
My youngest son recently began his last year as a teenager causing me to deeply exhale. I’ve been parenting teenagers for about 14 years now and frankly, I’m exhausted. There have been a lot of challenges and poor decisions made along the way, on both sides, and while I'm not one to wish time away, … Continue reading Hey, 19
For lost girls looking to be found
Although I read a lot of books (I’m on my 11th of this new year already), it isn’t often that I find one which speaks to whom I was as a young teen and whom I am now strive to be as a school librarian. Katie Van Heidrich’s memoir, The In-Between, told in verse, manages to … Continue reading For lost girls looking to be found
Speaking of days, it was one
My mood was good when I woke up Tuesday morning. I had slept well and felt rested, had an outfit planned out and solved my early morning puzzles, a daily exercise to wake up my brain. Bonus: the hair that was wet when I went to bed, looked perfectly fine. A couple of hours later, … Continue reading Speaking of days, it was one
Thanksgiving (isn’t just a) Day
There was a time in my life when I worked hard to follow and maintain holiday traditions. Some weirdly potent combination of recalled childhood moments, impressions of how other families celebrated and a desire to create lasting memories for my own sons, caused me to hold tightly to what I believed were irrefutable and defining … Continue reading Thanksgiving (isn’t just a) Day






